The Planet Begins Anger at U.S. policy doesn't destroy the optimism at the Earth Summit

It was a dream of environmentalists finally transformed into grand reality. After two years of painstaking preparations, the Earth Summit got under way in Rio de Janeiro with a global guest list of more than 100 world leaders and 30,000 other people concerned about the planet, from climatologists to tribal chieftains. The get-together's size is matched only by its ambition: to put civilization on a path that will sustain economic development without destroying the environment that supports all life. Canadian Maurice Strong, who organized the United Nations-sponsored meeting, set the tone of urgency: "We are either going to save the whole...